W.D.L Diamond — Short Stories
Every story has a door. Pick yours.
The home of every short story written by Westley and Deborah Langley — a mother and son who never could agree on a genre, so they wrote them all. Six doors below. Some you’ll want to leave open.
Choose a door
Six genres, one shelf
Fresh off the page
Latest short stories
- The Imperium Chronicles: Missing in ManchesterIn 1910 Manchester, Lydia regains consciousness, bound and in pain, while cultists discuss her fate. Her last memory before capture is a foggy street and a sudden blow to her head. Meanwhile, her friends Thomas, Miquel, and Elizabeth search desperately for her, encountering obstacles as they attempt to contact allies. As Lydia’s captors plan for the arrival of their leader, the urgency to rescue her escalates. Elizabeth resolves to inform her powerful mother, knowing her wrath will be unleashed if Lydia is harmed. The stakes rise as time passes.
- Once ScornedIn a sunlit Guildford café, two seemingly happily married women compare notes on their frequently absent husbands—both named Gary Walker. A shared joke turns to icy horror when they reveal their photos and realise they’ve been loving the same man, sparking a calculated, public confrontation and a bitter, liberating revenge.
- The Shadow of the TheatreLondon promised indulgence, but the real pull was the stage itself — the whispered mystery of The Shadow of the Theatre. Between wine‑soaked confessions and spa‑scented calm, I felt the city preparing me for something deeper. A performance that wasn’t just watched… but entered.
- The Silence Before the CallBeneath the undergrowth, hidden where the sun could not reach, something waited; It felt the vibrations of human footsteps through the soil, the heat of their bodies against the cooling air, the rhythm of voices it did not recognise. It had been silent for an age; and now…, it was awake…, it had…, returned to a world unprepared
- Meeting Hollywood’s Silver Screen GoddessesNext came Lena Thompson, the sultry brunette who could make a simple coffee order sound like a Shakespearean soliloquy. She was perched on a folding chair, sipping espresso while reviewing a script. “You look like you’ve never seen a film set before,” she said, eyes twinkling. “Let me show you how a real movie is made.”
- Shadows of the TheatreBut all the luxury was merely the prelude. My heartbeat was strictly for the evening’s main event: the tickets clutched tightly in my bag for the show I had been wanting to see for a year now. As it was in such high demand, they put the show on for a second year, so I had got my chance
A look inside
From the collection
Stay a while
We write a new one every week. Come back for it.
Subscribe and Westley and Deborah will drop their newest story straight into your inbox — no algorithms, no noise, just the next door for you to open.